 | Chris Owen
is President and founder of Hubris Communications. Until the opening of Hubris' Wichita office, Mr. Owen was the sole network technician and systems administrator of the company. Hubris Communications is a provider of premium Dial-Up, ADSL, SDSL, Wireless, and dedicated Internet Services. Founded in Garden City, Kansas and doing business since July 1995, Hubris Communications, Inc. serves over 3,200 customers in south central and southwestern Kansas. Chris can be reach at (316) 858-3000 or owenc@hubris.net |
Computers & Software
2002-09-01 09:27:00
It was from a friend!
QUESTION: I have recently gotten taken in by a couple of hoaxes. In one case a good friend told me to delete a file in my Windows/System directory which they said had a virus. I found out this was a valid file that I needed and was not infected. This still wasted quite a bit of time, even though it was not a virus. How can I find out what is just a hoax? Is there a web site that can tell me the latest hoaxes, or do I just have to call my Internet provider?
ANSWER: First of all, a good rule of thumb when dealing with these type of emails is to always assume they are not true. Most of them aren't so this is probably the safe bet. Many of these hoaxes can actually cause damage to people's computers, reputations or businesses so never pass something on as if you know it is true unless you actually do know the source and accuracy of what you are passing on.So how can you tell what is a hoax and what isn't? Ultimately you may have to research the issue but here are a couple of good guidelines:1) Has the email been forwarded many many times before it got to you?This is a good sign that the person sending you the email has no more evidence that the email is true than you do.2) Does the email ask you to forward this on "to everyone you know"? This is a classic sign of a hoax email.3) Does the email claim it is not a hoax? This may be the best sign of all. Any email that says it is not a hoax probably is.4) Does the email sound too good to be true or so bad you can't help but pass it on? You know what your mom said about things that seem to good to be true. Don't forget her advice now just because you got it in an email.Of course it is always possible that an email that has the above characteristics could be true, however the odds are that if it looks like a hoax it probably is.If you still have questions there are quite a few web sites that have examples of these type of hoaxes. Most antivirus companies maintain lists of hoaxes on their web sites. There are also a number of independent sites that maintain such lists. One of the most comprehensive is http://www.truthorfiction.com/.Visiting one of these sites may allow you to uncover most hoaxes. However, if you are still unconvinced, then before you forward anything you should probably check with your internet provider.Remember that these hoaxes can be terribly harmful to the people or businesses that they target. Before you participate in their spread you should really make sure you are sure that what you are passing on is accurate.
